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Ezel / Tax Rulings / TX
TX 8702L0799D08 Sales and/or Use Tax (State,Local,MTA) 1987-02-27

Were meals served to residents, visitors, and employees of Texas-licensed residential-care homes subject to sales tax?

Short answer: Resident meals were exempt because the homes were state-licensed institutions caring for people. Meals served to visitors or employees were taxable.

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1987. Ezel answers yours, under current Texas tax law, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1987
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This 1987 Texas Comptroller letter addresses meals at homes represented as licensed under applicable Texas laws for the care of human beings. The broader STAR caption mentions other institutions, food products, and soft drinks that the body does not separately decide. Licensing, residential-care, meal, employee, visitor, and local-tax rules may have changed. STAR documents may no longer represent current policy even when not marked superseded. Identities are redacted. This summary is informational only and is not legal or tax advice.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page) is the authoritative source for any reliance.

Plain-English summary

The Texas Comptroller said meals served to residents of institutions licensed by the state for the care of human beings were exempt from sales tax. Meals served to visitors or employees were taxable.

The homes' brochure stated that they were licensed under applicable Texas laws and regulations, so their resident meals qualified. The operative body did not separately decide soft drinks or the other institution categories listed in STAR's broader caption.

What this means for you

Licensing and the identity of the person receiving the meal both mattered. The resident exemption did not extend to employees or visitors eating at the same establishment.

Common questions

Were resident meals exempt? Yes.

Why? The homes were licensed by Texas to care for human beings.

Were employee meals exempt? No.

Were visitor meals exempt? No.

Did the body decide soft-drink sales? No.

Citations and references

  • The letter cited no numbered statute or Comptroller rule.

Source

Original ruling text

COMPTROLLER OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS
STATE OF TEXAS
AUSTIN, TX 78774

BOB BULLOCK
Comptroller February 27, 1987

Dear *:

Wayne McDonald asked me to respond to your letter of February 9, 1987,
concerning the taxability of meals provided to residents of
***'s homes for mentally retarded adults.

Meals served to residents of institutions licensed by the state for the
care of human beings are exempt. However, meals served to visitors or
employees of these establishments are taxable.

The brochure you submitted indicates that ***'s homes are
licensed under all applicable laws and regulations of the State of
Texas. The meals served in these homes will qualify, therefore, for
exemption.

This opinion is based on the facts presented. If there are additional or
different facts, the opinion may change.

If you have any questions or need more information, please call me at
1-800-252-5555 toll free from anywhere in Texas. The regular number is
512/463-4600. You may write me at the Tax Administration Division.

Sincerely,
Julie Pesl
Tax Policy Section
Tax Administration Division

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